Forty people were killed in Tuesday's collision between a train and a passenger bus in Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov has said, referring to latest reports.
"According to preliminary reports, 40 people were killed and ten injured," he said, while opening a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers on Tuesday.
Government members observed a minute’s silence for the deceased before the start of the meeting.
The collision occurred on the Kryvy Rih-Zaporizhia railroad early on Tuesday. The collision between an Etalon bus carrying around 50 passengers and a train occurred at an unmanned railway crossing.
"The crossing was closed to vehicle traffic," the press service of the Prydniprovska railways reported. The alarm system at the crossing was functioning properly, the press service said.
According to the State Administration of Railway Transport of Ukraine (Ukrzaliznytsia), the cause of the accident was the violation of traffic rules by the bus driver.
"The bus driver ignored the traffic warning lights and approached the crossing in close proximity to the approaching train, which resulted in a collision with the locomotive. According to preliminary reports, the bus was en route from Marhanets to Nikopol," Ukrzaliznytsia said in a statement on Tuesday.
Fifty-six people and 17 emergency equipment units attended the crash site.
Those injured in the collision have been hospitalized to Marhanets City Hospital.
